Prevalence of human papillomavirus types and variants and p16INK4a expression in head and neck squamous cells carcinomas in São Paulo, Brazil. Issue 1 (December 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Betiol, Julio; Sichero, Laura; Costa, Henrique; de Matos, Leandro; Andreoli, Maria; Ferreira, Silvaneide; Faraj, Sheila; de Mello, Evandro; Sobrinho, João; Brandão, Lenine; Cernea, Claudio; Kulcsar, Marco; Pinto, Fabio; Gonçalves, Antonio; Menezes, Marcelo; Silva, Leonardo; Rossi, Lia; Nunes, Rafaella; Termini, Lara; Villa, Luisa
• Is Part Of: Infectious agents and cancer. Volume 11:Issue 1(2016)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 7
• Publication Date: 2016-12
• Subjects: Human papillomavirus -- Head and neck cancer -- Molecular variants -- p16INK4a -- Prevalence; Cancer -- Etiology -- Periodicals; 616.994071
• DOI: 10.1186/s13027-016-0067-8
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1750-9378

Abstract

Abstract Background Human papillomavirus (HPV) prevalence in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) diverges geographically. The reliability of using p16INK4a expression as a marker of viral infection is controversial in HNSCC. We evaluated HPV types and HPV-16 variants prevalence, and p16INK4a expression in HNSCC specimens provided by two different Institutions in São Paulo. Methods HPV DNA from formalin-fixed specimens was accessed by Inno-LiPA, HPV-16 variants by PCR-sequencing, and p16INK4a protein levels by immunohistochemistry. Results Overall, HPV DNA was detected among 19.4 % of the specimens (36/186). Viral prevalence was higher in the oral cavity (25.0 %, 23/92) then in other anatomical sites (oropharynx 14, 3 %, larynx 13.7 %) when samples from both Institutions were analyzed together. HPV prevalence was also higher in the oral cavity when samples from both Institutions were analyzed separately. HPV-16 was the most prevalent type identified in 69.5 % of the HPV positive smaples and specimens were assigned into Asian-American (57.2 %) or European (42.8 %) phylogenetic branches. High expression of p16INK4a was more common among HPV positive tumors. Conclusion Our results support a role for HPV-16 in a subset of HNSCC.